If you think you’ve tried spaghetti Bolognese before, I have bad news. That tomato-rich red sauce that incidentally got the name “Bolognese” in most of the world has little to do with the original, authentic Bolognese sauce.
Although this is unusual for traditional Italian recipes, the Italian Academy of Cuisine (Accademia Italiana della Cucina) did create its original authentic Bolognese sauce recipe in 1982. I’ve actually never found it on the internet, but my recipe is basically the Bolognese sauce that you get in Bologna or Emilia-Romagna.
How to Use Authentic Bolognese Sauce
Bolognese sauce is a perfect accompaniment to almost any kind of Italian pasta.
You can make the favorite dish of the Emilia-Romagna region, spaghetti alla bolognese. Just add spaghetti al dente to your authentic Bolognese sauce, top it with some grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (Parmesan) cheese, and you’re ready to go. I recommend trying this with penne; in my opinion, it works better for chunky sauces. In Italy, pappardelle is also a very popular pasta for this sauce.
A good Bolognese sauce is also the main ingredient in the famous lasagne Bolognese (or lasagna Bolognese in the US).
How to Store Bolognese Sauce
Since authentic Bolognese sauce is quite time-consuming to prepare, my advice is to make as large a quantity as you can. In the photos, I made 4 times the quantities in this recipe.
You can store it in plastic containers or bags in your freezer. Whenever you crave a good spaghetti Bolognese, you’re ready to go in just a few minutes.
By the way, this is how Italians do it. They make a very large quantity of their sauces (ragù or sugo), store them in the freezer, and only use the amount they need for dinner or lunch.
Try the authentic Bolognese sauce and compare it to whatever you thought Bolognese sauce was!
Authentic Bolognese Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 onion medium
- 1 carrot
- 1 stalk celery
- ½ pound ground pork 250 g
- ½ pound ground beef 250 g
- 3 oz pancetta 100 g
- 1 cup red wine 240 ml
- 1 cup whole milk 240 ml
- 2 tbsp tomato purée (passata di pomodoro) 30 g (or use 1 tsp tomato paste)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ stick unsalted butter 50 g
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- To make authentic Bolognese sauce, first make a purée of the carrot, celery, and onion with a blender (called soffritto in Italian). If you don’t have a strong blender, simply grate the vegetables.
- Grate the pancetta so it also becomes almost like a purée. If it’s difficult to get Italian pancetta where you live, you can use bacon instead.
- Heat the olive oil and the butter in a large pan. Add the vegetable purée and let the moisture evaporate. It takes about 15 minutes to get the right consistency.
- Add the ground pancetta, pork, and beef. Stir occasionally over medium heat, and let it simmer for 30 minutes until all the liquid evaporates.
- Pour in the wine and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato purée. If you use tomato paste, dilute it first in the chicken stock. If you use tomato purée or canned tomatoes, you don’t need the stock. If you prefer canned tomatoes, use 1 ½ cups for this recipe. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook your authentic Bolognese sauce for 90 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Add some chicken stock or water to make up for the evaporated liquid.
- Pour in the milk little by little. It’s important to use whole milk; some Italian recipes even call for half-and-half. I used cream and whole milk in a 1:4 ratio. Let it come to a simmer once again, then turn off the heat and your authentic Bolognese sauce is ready.
